Health Infrastructure

Staff, stuff, space and systems all play a role in delivering high quality health care. We believe in constructed health facilities that serve as dignifying spaces that enhance sustained recovery. Health facilities, even in poor and rural areas, should be beautiful, safe places equipped with modern tools and equipment. In the three districts we support, we encountered many cases in which the health infrastructure was absent or inadequate. Over the years we have worked in partnership with the government of Rwanda to build from scratch or renovate several health facilities.

Signature Projects

Butaro Hospital

In partnership with the Ministry of Health and other partner organizations, the Butaro Hospital was constructed to provide world-class care to the under-served region in Burera District. The 180-bed hospital designed by MASS Design Group is an ambitious endeavor to redefine what rural health care looks like. In addition to providing complementary health care services the Butaro Cancer Center of Excellence provides the most sophisticated cancer care available in Rwanda’s public health system and is now designated as the national cancer referral center. This hospital features a Internal Medicine Ward, Pediatric Ward, Gynecology and Obstetrics Ward, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Emergency Care Unit, and a Surgical Ward with two Operating Rooms and a recovery Ward. The hospital also includes a state-of-the art Pathology Lab, capable of diagnosing many cancers in just a few days. The Butaro Hospital treats an average of 7,000 in-patients a year and more than 21,000 out-patients per year.

Butaro Infusion Center

The infusion center was designed to treat cancer patients who need regular IV chemotherapy but who don’t need to be admitted into the hospital. Patients can enter the one-story building to be registered and have their vital signs taken. The center features a room for chemotherapy drugs to be mixed on site. The facility—designed by the MASS Design Group and built by Partners In Health contains an open, sunny room whose large windows take full advantage of the views outside. Patients receive chemotherapy while sitting in comfortable chairs with seating around them so family members and attending medical staff can remain close by.

Rwinkwavu Operating Theaters

The Rwinkwavu District Hospital features two operating theaters built by PIH/IMB and designed by MASS Design Group. These facilities allow for general practitioners to perform cesareans section operations as well as minor surgeries such as biopsies for cancer screening, and hernia repair operations. Additional operations are performed when we host groups such as Operation Smile. We work to build the capacity of local general practitioners to perform surgeries at the district hospital level. The operating theaters have been open since August of 2014.

Kirehe Neonatal High Care Unit

In 2016, we opened a new state-of-the-art neonatal high care unit at the Kirehe District Hosital. This new unit is complete with modern incubators in order to care for extremely vulnerable newborns at the district hospital level. In all health facilities we support in the district we have implemented quality improvement projects through our mentorship program. These endeavors target critical areas for improvement and systematically create solutions to improve the quality of care provided.

Health Post Expansion

In June 2014, we embarked on a joint project with Glaxo Smith Kline and the Rwandan Ministry of Health to construct, equip, and support 36 health posts in some of Rwanda’s most remote communities. We have achieved this ambitious goal of constructing and equipping 36 new health posts in 15 districts across Rwanda. The health posts have significantly increased access to primary health services for thousands of rural Rwandans. The health post serves as the bridge between the community and the health center and offers primary curative health care service, preventive services including antenatal care, family planning, nutritional services, and health promotion care through Behavior Change Communication and Health education through community mobilization.